Chief Information Officer — Cybersecurity Hub

The mandate

The investment committee has withheld further expansion pending clarity on renewal of a high-cost and brittle enterprise technology estate within a listed multinational global-capability-centre network. The immediate arena is the cybersecurity hub during a captive-to-global mandate expansion. For mandate 217, the successful executive inherits decisions that have been deferred, competing stakeholder expectations and a need to establish facts before committing further capital.

The Chief Information Officer operating perimeter covers approximately ₹3,700 crore in annual global services budget, with activity spanning several cybersecurity hub customer, product and delivery clusters rather than a single asset. The Chief Information Officer Global Capability Centres remit carries direct influence over roughly 850 colleagues and third-party capacity.

The chair, executive committee and principal capital sponsors want a Chief Information Officer who can convert ambiguity into a short list of explicit choices for the cybersecurity hub. The Chief Information Officer Global Capability Centres seat must resolve a captive-to-global mandate expansion, while preserving the underlying strengths of the cybersecurity hub. For mandate 217, value will come through sharper allocation, stronger leaders and an operating cadence that exposes variance early.

The Chief Information Officer’s first year on the cybersecurity hub is expected to end with service stability, cyber hygiene and transparent technology economics. In mandate 217, authority covers resources and leadership appointments; material trade-offs go directly to the board sponsor.

Why this seat is open

This is a newly created Chief Information Officer — Cybersecurity Hub seat approved as part of the next operating model; it is not an incumbent replacement. The board is running a planned 4–6 month search so the appointee can join ahead of the next capital and talent cycle. Current leaders retain their existing accountabilities until the cybersecurity hub remit is formally activated. Confidentiality protects organisation design choices while the board compares external and adjacent-sector talent.

What you will own

• Set the Chief Information Officer value-creation thesis for the cybersecurity hub, translate it into no more than five enterprise priorities and stop work that does not support them.
• Carry stewardship of approximately ₹3,700 crore in annual global services budget, including allocation, risk acceptance and board forecasts.
• Lead the Chief Information Officer Global Capability Centres organisation of about 850 employees and partners, appointing a team with clear decision rights and credible succession for every critical seat.
• Resolve the cybersecurity hub economics and execution constraints created by a captive-to-global mandate expansion, with Chief Information Officer-approved owners, dated milestones and transparent escalation thresholds.
• Establish one Chief Information Officer operating review across commercial, customer, financial, people, technology and risk outcomes for the cybersecurity hub; remove reconciliations that obscure accountability.
• Have owned enterprise service, cyber, architecture and technology economics rather than a single application tower in mandate 217.
• Build the Chief Information Officer’s three-year succession and capability plan for the cybersecurity hub, reducing dependence on individual executives and improving mobility across the wider Global Capability Centres organisation.

The first 12 months

• Days 1–90: Validate the cybersecurity hub baseline, meet the 30 stakeholders most consequential to renewal of a high-cost and brittle enterprise technology estate, assess the leadership team, stabilise immediate delivery risks and agree a board-owned scorecard with explicit decision gates.
• Months 4–9: Make the principal Chief Information Officer portfolio and organisation choices for the cybersecurity hub, install the new operating cadence, fill critical leadership gaps and deliver the first measurable release of cash, capacity or customer value.
• Months 10–12: Demonstrate a repeatable cybersecurity hub trend against service stability, cyber hygiene and transparent technology economics, lock the following year’s capital and talent plan, evidence control sustainability and present a credible three-year value case with downside actions.

What the board will measure

• Delivery of the Chief Information Officer’s agreed first-year cybersecurity hub value case within a 10% tolerance, with variance explained before rather than after the relevant quarter closes.
• A Chief Information Officer forecast that remains decision-useful across three consecutive quarters and reconciles the cybersecurity hub’s operating, cash, customer and people assumptions.
• Closure of the Chief Information Officer mandate’s highest-priority cybersecurity hub risk and execution issues by their board-approved dates, with independent evidence that fixes are sustained.
• Retention of at least 90% of critical cybersecurity hub talent and ready-now successors for at least 70% of the Chief Information Officer’s direct reports.
• A quantified Chief Information Officer-owned improvement in the cybersecurity hub operating constraint behind a captive-to-global mandate expansion, supported by a clean baseline and named data owner.
• Clear stakeholder confidence in mandate 217: no unresolved high-severity escalation older than 30 days and no material surprise withheld from its agreed governance forum.

The person

You are currently a CIO, Regional CIO or Enterprise Technology Head in a listed Global Capability Centres or adjacent enterprise. In relation to the cybersecurity hub, your Chief Information Officer track record includes a transition where the original plan was no longer sufficient; you can explain your choices, evidence and numerical impact. Candidates from GCCs, shared services, enterprise technology, business services or multinational operations will be considered where the operating model, customer stakes and governance intensity match this Chief Information Officer brief.

As a Chief Information Officer candidate, you bring 18–22 years of progressive Global Capability Centres or adjacent-sector experience, consistent with the 18-22 experience band. At minimum, you have carried a P&L, book, budget or accountable portfolio of ₹2,150 crore and led an organisation of at least 600 people.

For mandate 217, the board wants two transitions: a difficult cybersecurity hub portfolio choice and a leadership-system change during a captive-to-global mandate expansion. As the prospective Chief Information Officer for this cybersecurity hub, you must challenge optimistic cases and still create followership. References for mandate 217 must distinguish your contribution from the institution around you.

The Chief Information Officer role in Global Capability Centres is based in Hyderabad; relocation is expected, although a structured weekly commute may be considered during the first quarter.

Non-negotiables

• Current or recent accountability at the level of CIO, Regional CIO or Enterprise Technology Head, with direct exposure to a board, investment committee or equivalent Global Capability Centres governance forum.
• Proven Chief Information Officer ownership of at least ₹2,150 crore and leadership of no fewer than 600 employees in a comparable cybersecurity hub context.
• One completed Global Capability Centres or adjacent-sector example of renewal of a high-cost and brittle enterprise technology estate with outcomes sustained for at least two reporting periods after the initial intervention.
• Sector credibility from GCCs, shared services, enterprise technology, business services or multinational operations; experience that is purely functional and lacks Chief Information Officer-level cybersecurity hub consequences will not meet the bar.
• Willingness to meet the Hyderabad location expectation, complete conflicts and background diligence, and protect the confidentiality of mandate 217.

Compensation and terms

The anticipated Chief Information Officer package is ₹3.2–4.6 crore fixed + performance variable and LTI, calibrated to the final cybersecurity hub scope and the candidate’s current mix. Any long-term participation for mandate 217 follows standard vesting and performance conditions. The Chief Information Officer appointment in Hyderabad, centred on the cybersecurity hub, offers regular exposure to the chair, executive committee and principal capital sponsors. A notice period of up to 6 months can be accommodated for the selected executive in mandate 217.

Confidentiality

Client identity is withheld at this stage and will be disclosed under mutual confidentiality after an initial fit discussion for mandate 217. Rounded ranges and blended context prevent this document from being used to triangulate the organisation for mandate 217.